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You take risks when you invest because what happens in the stock and bond markets is unpredictable. And you take risks when you form your own business. The business environment is unpredictable too.

Businesses can fail for many reasons. Some of the common ones are:

• a poor business plan
• inadequate financing
• poor financial controls
• strong competition
• management mistakes

For example, what problems can you imagine for someone who decides to open a video store this year?

One of the biggest risks you face when you work for yourself is financial. You risk not making enough money to pay yourself adequately for your time and energy. It’s no fun to work for nothing even if you love what you do.

Another risk is that you’re personally responsible for repaying the money you borrow to launch and run your business. Lenders often require that guarantee from small business owners.

You don’t want to ignore the potential for risk, or the evidence that more than half of all new businesses fail. But it doesn’t mean you won’t be among the ones that succeed.

Byline: Entrepreneurship

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An entrepreneur is someone who's excited about creating a business and works hard to turn that goal into reality. Entrepreneurs start and run businesses that sell products (such as clothes or software) or services (such as a restaurant or landscaping company), or sometimes a combination of products and services (like a bicycle shop or a hair salon).

Being an entrepreneur means lots of responsibility and risk . When a business does well, it can bring big rewards. On the other hand, when things don't go well, the business might lose money or have to close. Either way, entrepreneurs love the challenge of being responsible for developing a new business and being in charge of their own destiny.

Byline: Entrepreneurship